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The
Power of the Presence Part Two
This
new book describes Ramana Maharshi's impact on
the lives of six devotees. One of them, Sri Muruganar,
was a famous Tamil poet. In this excerpt, we reproduce
part of his biography and some of his poems from
the book.
By
DAVID GODMAN
MURUGANAR
(1893–1973) is widely regarded as being one
of the foremost devotees of Bhagavan. He was instrumental
in getting Bhagavan to compose the verses that
comprise Ulladu
Narpadu and Upadesa Undiyar, two
of Bhagavan's major philosophical poems, and he
composed thousands of poems of his own that either
praised Bhagavan, recorded his teachings or expressed
gratitude to Bhagavan for having established him
in the Self.
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In
his earlier life he was known as C.K. Subramania
Iyer, although his parents called him Sambamurthi.
Before coming to Bhagavan he was a well-respected
Tamil scholar who served on a prestigious committee
that was compiling the definitive Tamil dictionary.
He also worked as a schoolteacher and private
tutor.
It
was a visit by Dandapani Swami, his father-in-law,
that prompted him to go to Tiruvannamalai in September
1923. Dandapani Swami showed him Aksharamanamalai,
Bhagavan's 108 verses in praise of Arunachala.
Muruganar immediately recognised that Bhagavan
was the Guru he had been actively seeking. He
decided to pay a visit to Tiruvannamalai and see
him. On the way there he composed eleven verses
in the Arunachaleswara Temple. Most of the verses,
addressed to Bhagavan as Siva, contained pleas
for grace. Muruganar has described this
first visit and the background that led up to
it in two of his poetical compositions:
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'Will
I, an unworthy ignorant one, ever be accepted
as a devotee by Lord Siva who, as the Divine
Guru with the wealth of grace, showed clearly
to the world the greatness of Manikkavachagar?
And even if I get such a chance, will I
be able to sing of the glories of his grace-showering
feet in the same way as Tiruvachakam [Manikkavachagar's
most famous poetical work]?'
Like
many other thoughts that arose in my mind,
this thought, a long time ago, appeared
and disappeared, like a flash of lightning
manifesting in the sky.
Then
I heard from devotees who had redeemed themselves
by taking as their support the grace of
the one at Tiruvannamalai, who is the embodiment
of true jnana, and who shines as
the flame of true tapas. When they
spoke of the greatness of his grace, they
melted in joy. Hearing them, I was lost
in admiration and unceasing joy…
The
compassionate Supreme One, who is endowed
with jnana, then decided in his heart
to be my Lord and Master.
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the same way that wax melts on encountering
fire, on seeing his feet, my mind dissolved
and lost its form. |
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There
was in me a thirst, an intense longing to
subside [into the Self], that was prompted
by the thought of the divine feet, which
abound in grace. So, like one who, suffering
from thirst, comes across a Ganges of cold
water, on an auspicious day, a golden day
for my thirst, I went [to Ramana Maharshi]
with eleven verses that began 'Leaving Mount
Kailas…' and met the excellent sage,
the jnana Guru, the ocean of mauna,
the bestower of jnana.
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Reprinted
by permission from
The Power of the Presence Part
Two
by David Godman |
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Paperback.
269 pages.
Published 2001 by David Godman,
Avadhuta
Foundation.
ISBN 0971137110 |
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| WHERE
TO BUY IT |
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| Click
here
for ordering instructions. |
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| Sri
Muruganar |
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In
the same way that wax melts on encountering
fire, on seeing his feet, my mind dissolved
and lost its form. Like the calf finding
its mother, my heart melted and rejoiced
in his feet. The hairs on my body stood
on end. Devotion surged in me like an ocean
that has seen the full moon. Through the
grace of chitsakti [the power inherent
in consciousness], my soul was in ecstasy.
With
an unsteady and quivering voice, I read
the eleven verses and placed them at his
feet. At that very moment he graciously
looked at me with his lotus eyes. From that
day on, the praises given out by my impartial
tongue belonged only to him.
From
the way he bestowed his grace, becoming
my Lord and Master, I was completely convinced
that he was Siva himself. As my new 'owner',
he made my 'I' and 'mine' his own.
Even
if I get submerged in the miry mud [of this
world], I will not forget the mighty nobility
of the bountiful bestower of grace.1
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In
September 1923 Bhagavan was still living in a
small thatched hut that had been erected over
his mother's samadhi. Muruganar felt unsure
of the correct way of approaching Bhagavan, so
he remained for some time outside the hut. Bhagavan
solved the problem by coming outside and saying
'Enna?' ['What?']. In Tamil Nadu, this
is a standard way of ascertaining what business
a new visitor has.
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you read?' asked Bhagavan. 'Give it to me. I shall
read it myself.
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response to this query Muruganar began to sing the
verses that had been composed by him in the temple,
but emotion got the better of him. Tears welled
up in his eyes and he was unable to proceed.
'Can't
you read?' asked Bhagavan. 'Give it to me. I shall
read it myself.'
Bhagavan
then read out the poem. Up till this time Muruganar
had been very particular about annotating his
poems with a specific raga or melody, since
it was traditional that particular metres or themes
had be sung in a particular way. After this first
encounter with Bhagavan, he was never able to
sing his poems again.2
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1.
Sri Ramana Sannidhi Murai, 'Origin of the
work', lines 1-16, and Sri Ramana Sannidhi
Murai, 'Tiruvandappahudi', lines 49-80. (Return to text.)
2.This
elaboration of the first meeting was given by
Muruganar to V. Ganesan, who recorded it in 'Obeisance
to the Poet-saint: Muruganar'. See The Mountain
Path, 1973, pp. 202-3. Verse 1074 of Sri
Ramana Sannidhi Murai may be referring to
this first meeting:
Venkata
[Ramana] whose Being is Bliss
Overflowing and immeasurable,
Came out quick to meet this slave
And far from laughing in contempt,
Took me up and made me his own.
How wonderful his grace! (Return to text.)
Copyright
2001 David Godman. Reprinted by permission.
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This
article is reprinted with permission from
the book Power Of The Presence Part Two.
To learn where you can order a copy, click
here. |
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This
page was published on October 15, 2001 and
last revised on October 25, 2001.
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